Back-friendly office furniture: support for everyday working life

15th March is Back Health Day – an initiative of the Federal Association of German Back Schools and the Aktion Gesunder Rücken e. V. (AGR). This is a good time to talk about back-friendly office furniture, because the back can become a sticking point, especially during sedentary work. This year’s motto of Back Health Day is “With heart, hand and mind”. Derived from the philosophy of Pestalozzi, a well-known 18th century educator, this approach is still valid today.

Roughly summarised, Pestalozzi’s three terms can be defined as follows: “head” means reason and intellect, “heart” means emotions and feelings, and “hand” means motor and practical skills. The idea is to bring this triumvirate into balance. But how can this be applied to back health and back-friendly work?

Back-friendly products for office work

Michael Kläsener, ergonomics expert at Sedus, says: “The spine lives in the dark and the back can’t see which activity is putting it under strain. So it is all the more important that we open our eyes and behave in a back-friendly way. And this definitely includes physical activity as well as back-friendly office furniture at our workplace.”

This goes hand in hand with the fact that everyone should be aware of how and with what kind of furniture they spend their working day. Even though working at a computer screen often involves sitting, a desk and swivel chair can still promote active working. That’s why it’s worth looking into ergonomic furnishings for your personal workstation. The se:lab e-desk A desk, for example, is a height-adjustable desk that convinces with function and design. And the desk, se:desk home also has height adjustment and an extra shelf for utensils. In addition, it is explicitly certified by TÜV for use in the living area. In combination with a swivel chair such as se:flex, which automatically adjusts to the user, healthier sitting becomes easier. A standing seat such as se:fit, which can be used flexibly – at a normal work desk or at a high desk – can also offer a change of posture and variety.

Even in conferences or meetings, a sitting culture still prevails. This doesn’t have to be the case. The change from sitting to standing is worthwhile, because ideas often flow better and decisions are easier. Sedus has launched the height-adjustable team work table se:lab meet stand so that standing up can simply happen collectively. So there are no more excuses for purely seated meetings.

Back-friendly working with “heart, hand and mind”

So if everyone thinks about their daily routine, reflects on the way they work and keeps a few tips for back-friendly working in mind, complaints can be avoided. In this context, ergonomics does not only mean the use of ergonomic furniture, but above all one’s own willingness to move more regularly. In the spirit of the motto “With heart, hand and mind“, it is evident that the health and well-being factor at work is directly related to a harmonious, needs-oriented environment, sufficient movement and furniture that supports this.

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